A Chance at Life
by Nyght Musique
Summary: To me life was all work and no play. A venture into an old used bookstore, at a time where my life spiraled out of control, gave me an adventure of a lifetime, a chance for true love and a chance at life...rating might change.. please Review!
1. A Step Forward

The children must always be more successful than their parents. The grand old motto of my family and the tradition that I too must follow and then pass on to my children. You'd think this would be easy, especially by being the daughter of immigrant parents. Well, my mom is top in her field as a scientist and my dad is highly in demand as a pharmacist and chemist. My elder sister is a doctor and about to be married. As for me, I never realized how much of myself I've lost or never had the opportunity to explore, as I grew up following the footsteps of my successful parents and struggling to be noticed in the shadow of my sister.

I am the youngest, the so-called baby of the family and the one who always was thought of as still little and that there was no need to worry about her just yet. Yet I struggled and cried for my attention the only way I knew my parents would notice me, through my grades. I worked hard, studied hard and the built in battle between my creative side and my logical side raged on for the past 21 years, the former slowly becoming more and more defeated and diminished. Acting, singing, music, painting, and all those hobbies I loved as a child slowly became just that, hobbies. I fooled myself into thinking my passion was logic; that it was a career that I pursued only to make me more successful than my parents. Slowly, I was no longer fooling myself. I really believed that my passion was this and that music, art, painting and acting were just side distractions to my normal life. My life revolved around pleasing my parents and showing my worth to them. Though I had proved myself time and time again, it was a habit hard to break. I never realized I lost myself until I ventured forth that one night, hunting for a book that were not along the genres of politics, law or science, but a book that would hold my interest and perhaps strengthen the losing side of my mind.

It was raining that night, but I was determined for something that could save me. I was in a downward spiral, unable to catch my breath as my life sped out of control. My fiancé had deserted me and my parents blamed me for not holding onto him, a man successful and perfect, and yet such an ass that I hated him and hated myself whenever I was around him. He was perfect, in my parents' eyes, the epitome of true success of a successful daughter, the wealthy and ambitious husband. Never mind that I had a bachelor of arts from an ivy league university, a judicial degree from another prestigious law school; the one thing that became the apple of my parents' eyes was the man I chose to be chained with. No doubt he mentioned to them that I quit my job at the law firm a week ago or that I had become an aimless wanderer, with no purpose or no direction. My parents' awe of me was quickly diminishing and I was struggling to keep my head above the water as my life quickly became meaningless.

-- -- --

I ran into the bookstore, my hair in wet strands about my face and just about everything I was wearing on me soaked with water. An old man greeted me at the front and handed me some paper towels, giving me a sympathetic smile before pointing in a certain direction. I thanked him and walked there, thinking it was just going to lead me to the bathroom to dry off a bit. I walked deeper into the aisles of books, the air getting muskier with the smell of old, rare and used books. I glanced upwards, noticing the lone light bulb flickering, a couple of cobwebs clinging onto it and I gave an involuntary shiver, from the cold or something else, I did not know. I glanced behind me to realize that I could not see the entrance where I had come from. I knew at that point that I should have turned back and tried to retrace my steps, but I found that I had to continue on. There was nothing left for me back there, nothing to retrace my steps on.

I kept moving forward, the light from that lone bulb getting dimmer and the air around me became muskier. I glanced backwards again, as I continued walking forward, thinking perhaps, I had made a mistake in continuing forward. My foot suddenly caught on something and I felt myself falling forward. I shut my eyes, putting my hands in front of me to brace for the inevitable fall. When it didn't come, I slowly opened my eyes, wincing at the bright light that was there. I glanced around quickly and realized that I was no longer in the bookstore and not only that, the reason for the lack of falling was due to a man holding onto my arms, saving me from a few unwanted injuries.

I gazed up into his warm, brown eyes, dazed for the moment. I was no longer cold; his hands on my arms had spread heat throughout my body. All I wanted to do in that moment was lean in and kiss his lips. I had never before felt such warmth and protection from another person before and I wanted to take it all in. Unfortunately, before I did give into my passions, he pulled back a bit, straightened me out and slowly let go of me.

"Almost had a bit of a fall there, my Lady," he smiled at me, "Are you alright?"

I blinked at him, a dozen different thoughts running through my mind. I glanced down at my clothing, realizing I wasn't wearing my wet jeans, wet sweatshirt and converses, but instead I was in a simple pale blue gown, like one would see in the history museums. My hair wasn't wet and down either, but also up in a simple hairstyle. I glanced around again, taking in my surroundings. There were two horses nearby, one I guessed was mine and the other his and we were in a bright meadow. There was a castle manor in the distance as well. I took a deep breath in.

"My Lady?" I asked the first question that popped into my mind and then kicked myself for choosing that as the first thing I asked. Why couldn't I have asked, where am I? How the hell did I get here? Who are you? What year is this?

He gave a little chuckle, "Yes, my Lady, are you well? Perhaps it is best to head back to your home."

"Just call me Tabitha. Um… just play along, but where am I? Who am I? What year is this? Who are you? What is going on?" I ask quickly, shifting towards my law school training.

He looked at me concerned, but dutifully answered my questions anyway.

"You are on Edgewood Manor Estates, the property bestowed upon you by your parents, just 5 days journey outside of London. You are, my lady, Tabitha Edgewood, Lady Wessex, the title from your grandmother, daughter of Count and Countess of Lexington. It is the year 1558. I am your loyal servant and head of your guards Nathanial Melbrooke. As to what is going on, that my lady I am not quite sure what you mean."

"Okay, Nate, I am not going crazy but two minutes ago I was in the year 2008, in a used bookstore, and definitely not in this dress. My name is Tabitha Edgewood, but I'm definitely not a Lady, I'm a lawyer and…I don't own a castle!!" My logical brain was definitely short circuiting at this point.

He gives me the same sympathetic smile as that bookstore owner gave me and then hands me a flask.

"Perhaps the heat is too much, have some water."

I grumble and take the water anyway, knowing that two minutes before I had plenty of water, even if it was just soaked in my clothing, and that I was completely sane and perhaps this was just a weird dream. I let him lead me to the horses after I had my fill of water, my brain not bothering to think. Well, that is, until the sharp smell of horses attacked my senses and I stopped abruptly realizing that no matter what time period I was in, I cannot ride horses!

"Um… problem, you see… I… uh… can't ride horses…" I stuttered to him as I gazed up at the large animal in front of me.

He gave me the same glance again, and by this time I was tired of sympathetic looks from people, before quietly taking me about my waist, lifting me up onto the saddle and then moving up to sit behind me. He took the reins of both horses and led us all back towards the castle. As for me, despite the warm, comforting and definitely masculine body against my back, I still hoped that I was dreaming. Of course, I hoped that if it were a dream, then I wouldn't ever have to wake up.


	2. How can I be her?

_Thank you all who reviewed my first chapter! I hope you all enjoy this next chapter of mine! Keep on reading and reviewing! – Nyght Musique_

I sat in "my" room, maids fluttering around me taking care of this and that, while my housekeeper looked down at me with a concerned look. She probably figured, as I reference those romance novels that I kept hidden in box under my bed at home, that the sun and morning exertion was too much for my poor, weak, delicate lady's body. I inwardly groaned. I hoped she wasn't thinking that because I hated being coddled, but then again, it could have its uses. I figured Nathanial might have told her my little outburst from earlier. I would rather her blame the sun than to throw me into some 16th century insane asylum.

I luckily read enough romance novels to know how to get rid of a bothersome housekeeper. I straightened up, gave her my most piercing 'lawyer' gaze that provoked no questions, and dismissively waved my hand.

"Mrs. Whetworth," I said authoritatively, I also knew her name because I overheard the maids addressing her, "I am fine. I just had a bit too much sun. I'd like a glass of water and I'd like for everyone to leave the room so that I may get some rest."

She looked a bit startled, and I wondered if the real Lady Wessex ever spoke to her like that, but she quickly straightened up, gave me a curtsy and shooed all the maids and herself out of my room.

I let out a breath of air and slumped back against my chair as well as I could with the corset on me. I took a long glance around my room, noting some portrait paintings of myself and several adjacent rooms that I could only imagine led to my bathroom and closet. I got up and started exploring my room, wondering if there were any diaries that could tell me more about Lady Wessex. To my surprise, I found a pair of boys clothing hidden deep in the armoire and further exploration of the room revealed paints, brushes and easels. This Lady Wessex definitely had interesting habits.

Suddenly I heard the clang of clashing swords outside my window and I hurried over to see what was going on. I saw Nathanial fighting against a smaller looking boy, probably training him in sword fighting. I kept on watching him and felt my heart jump each time I thought that boy was going to hurt him. Of course, Nathanial was very skilled, blocking all attempts and throwing out his own strong offense against the boy. I leaned out my window, not fully, just my head for the most part, and waved down there to the boys.

"Nate!" I called out, waving.

I saw the two of them stop what they were doing and glance up at me completely startled. I realized I just might have committed a grave faux pas. I don't believe ladies would necessarily shout down to their guard as they practiced sword fighting, unless it was to cry for help of course.

"Is everything alright My Lady?" calls up Nathanial, his startled expression now turning into one of worry.

"Yes, everything is fine! I.. uh .. just wanted to say hi" I shouted down quickly before retreating back into my room in sonic speed, completely embarrassed. I was definitely not cut out to be a lady.

I sighed, and being a lady meant that flirting with the head of the guards was not really an accepted practice in this day and age. Well, luckily, I'm not really a lady. I smiled to myself and proceeded to my door. Figuring out how I got here can wait; there was a cute guard in the courtyard and a manor to explore! I opened my door with eager force, startling the maid who was just about to knock on it to bring me my glass of water. I smiled at her, took the glass with a thank you, and headed off down the hallway.

I barged into one of the first doors I encountered and realized it was a study. I headed over to the large desk and sat down in front of it, glancing at the piles of papers in front of me. At random I chose one to look at, seeing it was full of numbers and family names. A loud knock on the door then startled me, causing me to drop the paper back onto the desk.

"C-come in!" I called out, wondering if I was somehow going to get into trouble for trespassing in this study. I wasn't sure if Lady Wessex used this study or not.

The door opened and Nathanial came inside. He had cleaned up from his workout, but he still had that masculine, just came out of a workout, not too bad smelling smell to him. I gave another inward groan. I was definitely attracted to him. He approached nearer to me and I gave a nod for him to sit down on one of the chairs at my desk.

"How are you feeling, My Lady?" his concerned eyes look directly into mine.

"Just fine Nate…uh Nathanial…" I responded; my words a bit flustered. Good grief, I had to shape up. I was 25 years old for goodness sake! Not some teen with a schoolgirl crush!

"You… you need to believe me, I'm really not from this time period." I blurted out, just wanting someone on my side. I straightened up and looked him straight in the eyes with a no nonsense look. "I'm from the 21st century, New York City in the United States. I'm a lawyer! I know nothing about being a lady at all. I don't know who this Lady Wessex is, except that she has the same name as myself. You must believe me! You've got to find something odd in my behavior compared to before."

He sat back, studying me. He was probably debating the pros and cons of whether or not to believe me in what I was saying. He gave a large sigh and sat up again.

"Well, there is something different about you I guess." He started cautiously. I nod for him to continue. "You weren't so assertive before, nor so audacious in your manner. Even seeing you in your own study comes as a complete surprise. Your speech is also very different."

I gave off a sigh, "Will you help me then? I don't know what happened to the real Lady Wessex, but somehow I'm in her place right now. I trust you and she must have trusted you too as you were her guard. I have to figure out a way to get back home to the year 2008. I don't belong in this century."

He gives me a short nod. I could tell that he was still very much unsure whether to believe me or not, but he did choose to take a step forward to try to accept what I was saying.

"I'm not crazy, I promise. I am perfectly sane. I don't even believe in time travel, body-swapping kind of thing. I am a normal human being who just happens to find herself in some really extraordinary circumstances." I continued, trying to defend myself.

"Alright, I'm going to choose to believe you, for now. If what you say is true, how do you expect to go back to your own time?" he asks softly.

"That I have no idea. I guess, I was brought back here for something; some sort of mission or to find myself. I really have no idea! But, all I know is that I have no idea what sort of life Lady Wessex has led and what exactly is expected of her."

"Alright, I guess we can start with basics. Born in London, parents are currently traveling abroad. You are very popular in the social scenes of London during the Season. Unmarried, as you turned down every suitor you've ever gotten since you were 15. Despite your spinster status, suitors still flock to ask you to marry them…"

"Why is that?" I interrupted him, "if I'm not assertive and bold as you claim, then why would I turn down all those proposals?"

He shrugged at me. "I guess you were looking for something specific in a future husband. Anyway, I believe you went to finishing school when you were 13, somewhere in the country. I believe many nobles sent their daughters there too. I was just a young lad in your household at the time."

"Were we friends growing up?" I asked him, curious.

"Well, we did get into our fair share of trouble. You used to wear breeches a lot and I'd tag along to make sure you didn't get into trouble, but somehow we both ended up in trouble. We were friends until your parents sent you away to finishing school. Then you became a lady."

I nodded and sat back quietly. He looked a bit forlorn. I thought back to the boys clothing I found hidden away and figured Lady Wessex might have kept them for some sentimental value. Perhaps, the mysterious lady might have turned down those suitors because of hidden feelings for Nathanial. It also sounded like to me that Nathanial missed how Lady Wessex was when she was younger. I straightened up and cleared my throat.

"I think, it might be best if you kept to my side so I don't slip up. You could teach me etiquette and everything a lady should know."

He nodded, "I can do that."

"Lets start with this, all these papers and files and numbers. What does it have to do with me?"

He takes a quick glance at them. "You have a bookkeeper who works for you and was recommended to you by a powerful family friend, Lord Craven. You also give Lord Craven a small percentage of revenue for helping you take care of the property you own. That property hosts a small village that pays taxes to you for allowing them to live and work on your land. Generally, Lady Wessex chose not to pay attention to any sort of business matter, so Lord Craven extends his generous hand in helping control your finances from the village."

I glance at the sheet I had looked at earlier, doing some quick calculations in my head once I realized what it all meant.

"Apparently too generous, this Lord Craven," I mutter disgustedly. "Generous to himself! They are exploiting the villagers! He's overtaxing them and then these accounts are all fake, reflecting probably the money that was originally agreed upon, and Lord Craven is probably stealing all the excess money! This is horrible!"

Nathanial looked just as horrified as I did. He took the ledger from my hand and looked it over. It was true. The numbers did not reflect what was actually being taken. A dismissive eye, Lady Wessex's eye, would not have noticed those changes unless she had taken the time to really double check the entire document.

"What are you going to do My Lady?" asked Nathanial.

"Tabitha, please. And I'm not sure yet, but I'll figure out something. After all, I am a lawyer and if its one thing I'm good at, it's getting people justice."

With that said, I handed him a stack of ledgers, took my own stack and started reviewing each one to figure out exactly how long this has been going on. We'll get to the bottom of this problem. Perhaps, this was why I had been called back to this time period. It was going to be a very long day. I glanced up at Nathanial and smiled to myself. Well, if it was going to be a long day, at least I got to spend it with him.


End file.
